Essay Example on Scientific reproducibility is the extent to which scientific data and results can be Replicated

The year 2008 was determined because it is current enough to allow for the original authors to be contacted and original materials obtained but also allowed for enough time to have passed to determine the influence of the article and findings The researchers and project coordinators also matched research teams with studies that aligned with their area of research proficiency For every article that was matched only one study and one research finding were replicated and analyzed The results of this report showed that the majority of studies that were replicated produced weaker results seen through comparison of effect sizes and P values compared to the original data For each article that was chosen for replication only one study and only one finding within that study were investigated for reproducibility Also it is possible that there may have been some selection bias since only feasible inexpensive and more simplistic studies were chosen for replication 

This article gave insight into the importance of reproducibility overall and the need for reliability of results It showed that significant results should not be taken at face value and that further studies should be conducted to try and replicate the results and provide further evidence These findings do not suggest that the original studies were correct or were incorrect Instead it shows that further investigation and exploration of these hypotheses and findings are necessary to determine the validity of the results Researchers can be transparent with their methods and all their data and try not to be selective in their analysis and reporting The article also emphasized the need for researchers and especially editors to not disregard studies that appear to be unoriginal because they focus on a topic or scientific question that has already been published There is a need for replicated results and studies to show the degree of reproducibility and reliability of the original results There is also a need for the publication of studies that do not produce significant results These findings would allow the scientific community to see what has been tried in the past and how to possibly improve and build upon these studies The publication bias that is present in all fields of science is limiting and deterrent to progress The authors of this article bring up a very profound point when they stated that there is a need for both innovation and replication within all aspects of scientific research If we are constantly in search of novel findings and not also in pursuit of supporting evidence of past findings then science will not progress